'Sherlock' adds Amanda Abbington for season 3

It's good to be Martin Freeman. The British actor recently starred in the blockbuster Peter Jackson film 'The Hobbit,' his smash-hit BBC series 'Sherlock' (wherein he plays John Watson) is returning for a highly anticipated third season... and now his longtime real-life partner Amanda Abbington has been cast in 'Sherlock' as well.

Abbington, best known for her roles on 'Case Histories' and the Jeremy Piven vehicle 'Mr. Selfridge' (premiering in the USA on March 31), will take a recurring role on 'Sherlock' as a character who will "significantly impact" the lives of Watson and Sherlock Holmes. Stephen Moffat, showrunner for 'Sherlock,' teased fans last year with a few key words that would factor in thematically to 'Sherlock's third season; one of those words was "wedding." Could Abbington be a romantic interest for either Freeman's Watson or Cumberbatch's Holmes?

Fans of 'Sherlock' are well aware of the shocking ending to the second season, which will presumably be explained in the first episode of season three, entitled "The Empty Hearse." That title seems rather fitting, as the end of the second season featured a (presumably faked) suicide. The episode is believed to be based on Arthur Conan Doyle’s "The Adventure of the Empty House," rather than "hearse," which is one of the thirteen classic Sherlock Holmes stories.

Keep your eyes on Abbington; with 'Mr. Selfridge' and now 'Sherlock' coming Stateside, the partner of Freeman may be the next person in line to star in a massive feature blockbuster.